Drawings for August and September

 

Life is good but life is busy....what a summer! It has gone by in a flash - a very hot flash at that - those temperatures were high. I have done my drawings but didn't get around to posting them again so here are two for August and September. My blog posts seem to be turning up like busses don't they ;o)

Nasturtiums   pencil and ink sketchbook   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec 

I grew nasturtiums this year in my veggie beds and found all the black fly went to the flowers and left the veggies alone so I will definitely be doing that again next year. This drawing was done before they arrived and inspired by the vivid colours I added a tiny amount of red.

Fern   pencil and ink sketchbook   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec 

My drawing for September is another from my garden. I found this lovely specimen growing behind the water butt. It must have survived because of the shade cast and the leak the butt had sprung otherwise I think it would have burnt to a crisp.   

I did find a couple more leaves that weren't in such good condition but they were perfect for inking up and taking some prints from. These lovely shapes will be something I come back to at a later date methinks.

fern prints in my nature sketchbook   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec 

2026 drawing project - plant forms for June and July

 

I seem to be experiencing some gremlins within my blog. For reasons that remain a mystery this post didn't publish last month and I seem to be unable to comment on mine or anyone else's blog. I haven't the foggiest why but hope it resolves itself soon. Fingers crossed that this post publishes....

This is the missing drawing from June for my drawing a month project. The same model as March's drawing but this time a top view.

Pine cone top view   sketchbook study in stages   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

My drawing for July is below. Dandelions begun in Spring but only recently completed. The meadows were full of lush grass and dandelions back then - a very different story to now as everything is burnt, dry and dusty with the rather repetitive heatwaves.

Dandelion study   sketchbook page   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

How beautiful was this? I couldn't fail to be inspired...

2026 Drawing project - Mrs Willmott's Ghost

 

Mrs Willmott's Ghost   sketchbook page coloured pencil and ink    ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

Eryngium giganteum, with the common name Miss Willmott's Ghost, is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae. The short-lived herbaceous perennial thistle is native to the Caucasus and Iran in Western Asia.

Source: Wikipedia

Named after Ellen Willmott (1858 - 1934) who liked to secretly scatter seed, maybe the first guerrilla gardener, she certainly seemed like a character with an interesting life and a passion for horticulture.

I love this plant for it's barely there colour, almost luminescent tones, which makes a strong contrast against other plants. The specimens that I have drawn here were grown in my garden last summer and have dried to a hint of cream in colour. I am looking forward to seeing it again this year.

Mrs Willmott's Ghost (detail)   sketchbook page coloured pencil and ink    ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

2026 drawing project - honesty... silver dollars...lunaria and a pine cone

 

Honesty Silver Dollars Lunaria   sketchbook drawing mixed media   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec  

April's drawing (I am so late posting!) is inspired by a stem of Honesty that blew across my path as I walked down to the fields. It was dull grey winter time and this little stem shone like it contained all the light of the day - so beautiful. It has been standing in a bottle for a few months waiting for its turn to be drawn. It isn't until you start to closely observe that you see just how many colours are contained within it's luminous discs, I'm not sure I have done it justice but it was an absolute joy to try.

Now I am not sure what happened to March's drawing because I did post it but it seems to have gotten lost as it is not here now. Anyway, I will include it here;

Pine cone Drawing stages   sketchbook mixed media   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

I used to draw pinecones frequently in the past, I love getting lost in the patterns but has been a little while since the last one. I thought you might like to see the stages of drawing that I use and below the final sketch.

 

Pine cone  mixed media in sketchbook   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

Below is a bonus sketch; on a familiar stretch on a dog walk I came across this on the path. Either the remainder of something's lunch or maybe discarded by another dog  was this 'pinecone flower' another treasure bagged and stored away in a pocket to be drawn. The strange thing was that I'm pretty sure the nearest pine tree is about a kilometre away so this little flower had travelled a bit.

Pine cone  mixed media in sketchbook   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

I will try to be a little more punctual for May!

Broken but still Beautiful - October

 

Broken but Still Beautiful October   pencil on paper ©2024LisaLeQuelenec

Very broken but ohhhh so beautiful. For October's drawing I chose a fragment. Sometimes when I find these they are very fine and delicate at the edges of the outer surface but reveal a more sturdy columella. The whole of this small one was a little more robust and so made it home in my pocket without further damage.

This is posting a little late - I am behind after a fun filled half term with birthday celebrations. I'm not sure how my son can be 11 already but here we are.

Shades of Autumn II - Oak drypoint prints

 

Oak variable edition drypoint print 8x7.5cm available individually ©2024LisaLeQuelenec

I made a sister print to last weeks Acorns and have popped a couple of variations into both my Etsy and Folksy stores. I rather like working in this way and having colour variations. 

The one below is in Folksy.

Oak no.5 variable edition drypoint print 8x7.5cm available individually ©2024LisaLeQuelenec

I am still working on some larger drypoints of stormy skies and seas but having been rather enjoying the dry spells of sunny weather between the storms so progress has been slower. We have had lots of reference weather to help things along though....my gosh the rain! Obviously nothing compared to the weather some American friends seem to be enduring at the moment though, I do hope they manage to stay safe.

Shades of Autumn - Acorns drypoint prints

 

Acorns variable edition drypoint print 8x7.5cm available individually ©2024LisaLeQuelenec

Acorns that found their way into my pocket whilst out walking my dog. Each printed in a different autumnal shade and one in a soft warm charcoal black. I have two proof prints made whilst the plate was being tested for the edition which I may work into with mixed media at a later date. I have put a couple of the prints in both my Etsy and Folksy stores. 

I enjoyed printing the edition one print after another mixing the ink as I went adding to the colour left by the previous mix. I think I may do more of these with different motifs. It was nice to try something different. 

Acorns variable edition drypoint print 8x7.5cm available individually ©2024LisaLeQuelenec

Broken but still beautiful - August & September drawings

 

Broken but Still Beautiful August   pencil on paper ©2024LisaLeQuelenec

A little bit different to previous drawings again. August's model suggested line quality should be the focus and I thought 'who am I to argue?'...except argue I did as I wanted to add shadows to the form half way through and added hatching which would have been more sympathetic if I was using ink. I know, I know, I should have listened....it's a lesson I haven't learnt thus far....hey ho. Sometimes you win and sometimes you learn.

Broken but Still Beautiful September   pencil on paper ©2024LisaLeQuelenec

I think my listening skills improved this month as beautiful Dame September adorned with a patina of barnacles and sumptuous textures modelled some intriguing shapes and forms. I have a feeling that I will return to this specimen in the future as I enjoyed the interlocking shapes of the barnacles so much.

Fingers crossed the glitch in the comments is fixed. I'm not sure how or why but fingers crossed.

Emerging - Broken but Still Beautiful - June

 

Emerging   mixed media on paper 33x75cm   ©2024LisaLeQuelenec

A much bigger beauty for June, I felt like a larger scale and a bit of blue. I think it suits her - loud and proud.

Using a swordliner brush in the background for the sinuous lines that I feel echo both shell and the idea of water, it felt good to stretch a bit. I used a combination of watercolour, watersoluble pencils, gouache and acrylic ink to get the darkest darks. Back to pencil next month I think.

Emerging   mixed media   prints, stationery and accessories available at RedBubble   ©2024LisaLeQulenec

Spiral inspiration

 

Spiral inspiration from paper trimmings ©2024LisaLeQuelenec

Inspiration really is everywhere! Aren't these spirals just perfect. Trimmings from paintings I was getting ready to mount. I feel a new pattern coming on....

They remind me of Karl Blossfeldt photographs.

Broken but still beautiful V

 

Broken But Still Beautiful V

A little bit of a change this month - after starting out in pencil I thought this one was a dramatic enough shape to explore in ink with more extreme tonal contrasts. I quite like the stronger background. 

Stages of Broken But Still Beautiful V  A4-ish acrylic ink  ©2024LisaLeQuelenec

This month's model was acquired in Longniddry, Scotland. I was astonished at the size of the shells I found there. The majority of the whelks (and scallops) that I found there were at least twice/three times the size of the largest ones that I find along the South Coast (size comparison in the photo below). I collected a few beautifully broken ones and one with the most stunning 'pashmina' of barnacles. I will save this one for later in the year, maybe an extra large version when I can work outside... 

Whelks ©2024LisaLeQuelenec

Broken but Still Beautilful II & III

 

I neglected to post February's Broken but Still Beautiful drawing, time ran away with me again. So this month double bubble and two drawings to post!

Broken but Still Beautiful II   pencil on A4 paper   ©2024LisaLeQuelenec

The shell above I use often in flat lays when photographing my work for my shop. I love the elegant shape of the curves. It is also quite unusually pure white.

Broken but Still Beautiful III   pencil on A4 paper   ©2024LisaLeQuelenec

No.III is full of elegant curves too, I think this is why I am so attracted to drawing the broken bits of whelks. They are so sculptural and the forms make for dramatic tonal values.

Limpets in varied edition collagraph prints

 

Limpets   ©2021LisaLeQuelenec

 

 

At home in Jersey, I still call it home despite not having lived there for more than 25 years, limpet shells are very common due to the rocky coastline that is their habitat. In Bournemouth a lack of rockpools means that I don't see them washed up on the beaches. When I go back to visit I usually find a few have worked their way into my pockets. I'm not sure if it is because I am missing home (I'm wondering when it will feel safe to travel - I am cautious by nature) or because the broken shells that fascinate me remind me so much of the hag stones that I do find here in Bournemouth but I have been drawn to draw them. (See what I did there.)

 

Limpet shells and the collagraph plate that they inspired   ©2021LisaLeQuelenec

 

 

After sketching out a few plans in my sketchbook I decided to make a collagraph plate, I had just had an order delivered that had some fine carborundum grit in it amongst other things and was eager to test it out. Using mountboard as a plate, acrylic medium as an adhesive, the grit and some grout/tile adhesive I set to work. I'm not sure if in shows very well in the photo but once the plate was dry I scratched into it with a drypoint needle to add more linear elements.

Below are four of the prints in the small edition all inked up differently to each other.

Ensemble  (4 of the prints in a varied edition of 6)  collagraph   9.5x9.5cm   ©2021LisaLeQuelenec

I couldn't resist making some more plates below is another of them with the resulting prints. I have put some of the prints for sale in my Folksy  store.

Limpets shells and collagraph plate   ©2021LisaLeQuelenec

Stacked   varied edition collagraph   8x13cm    ©2021LisaLeQuelenec

At the end of all of this printing, I looked again at the plates. I kind of think they could be framed in their own right. I like looking at the worn down textures (worn by the press rather than by the sea) and the history of ink colour that has sunk into the grooves and the plate.

Collagraph plates and limpet shells   ©2021LisaLeQuelenec

Beach Treasures in mixed media

Beach Treasures   etching and mixed media    ©2018LisaLeQuelenec

Following on from the etchings in last weeks post I couldn't resist playing with a set in coloured pencil. I have scanned them and made the available as cards and reproduction prints on Redbubble .

Beach treasures   etching and coloured pencil   ©2018LisaLeQuelenec

Beach treasures etchings and process

Sketches and preliminary sketchbook work for the Beach Treasures etching ©2018LisaLeQuelenec

I had begun to plan my most ambitious etching project to date some time ago. As always it started in my sketchbook and was a kind of continuation of the watercolour beach treasures collections to begin with I wasn't sure if the compositions were going to be in watercolour or print. I had even gotten as far as thinking about colour when I decided to go the etching route.

Concept sketch for Beach Treasures etching plates ©2018LisaLeQuelenec

Refining the shapes and drawing for each plate took some time as I wanted to get the spacing and balance perfect for each individual plate and for it to work just as well as a triptych. Once that was done I was ready to make the plates and could easily transfer each outline onto the prepared zinc. Carefully I added in the hatching to render the form of the objects. There is a lovely parallel between the hardness of the shells and pebbles and the delicate marks they have and recreating it on a hard metal plate.

Once completed the plates are bathed in acid for the drawing to be eaten away giving a 'tooth' for the ink to settle in and imprint on the paper. After carefully cleaning away the rest of the ground (the substance used as a barrier to keep the acid from eating away at the metal where you don't want a mark) the plate is ready for inking.

The plates all ready for printing - Beach treasures ©2018LisaLeQueleenc

I have proofed the plates individually (made test prints) in both black and blue/black ink and am happy with the results. It really does pay for me to spend time in the preparation before starting the plate making.

The proof prints are both available mounted as you can see here at Seaside Studios UK on Etsy. Prints of individual plates are available on both Etsy and in my Folksy store.

Beach treasures I, II & III   original etchings, first artists proof prints mounted to 30x50cm   ©2018LisaLeQuelenec

Beach treasures I, II & III   original etchings, second artists proof prints mounted to 30x50cm   ©2018LisaLeQuelenec

Beach Treasures I, II & III   etchings 6.5x13.5cm   ©2018LisaLeQuelenec

Three Pebbles - proofing an etching plate and an experiment.

Two little pebble etching proof prints - trying out ideas for inking - both available on Folksy.

Three Pebbles   artist proof no.2  3x10cm   ©2018LisaLeQuelenec

Three Pebbles   artist proof no.3  3x10cm   ©2018LisaLeQuelenec

....then a little experiment mixing printing techniques and adding drawing. The darker pebble shapes are the individual collagraph plates from a few posts back over-printed onto the etching. Another avenue of possibilities to explore.

Pebbles   etching, collagraph monoprint and watersoluble pencil   17x11.5cm ©2018LisaLeQuelenec

Ebb and flow - collagraph and mixed media

Ebb & Flow   28x18cm collagraph collage and mixed media   ©2018LisaLeQuelenec

Following on from the Elemental triptych a couple more mixed media pieces. They have proved very difficult to photograph I'm not sure if it is a problem with my camera or just that it can't cope with the subtleties of texture and tone in the printed elements.

Edges, line, boundaries, balance and texture seem to be my focus at the moment. I think I need to spend some time drawing - thinking with a pencil (or whatever else comes to hand.....).

Ebb & Flow II   28x18cm collagraph collage and mixed media   ©2018LisaLeQuelenec

Hag stones - watercolour and collage

Hag stone sketch ©2017LisaLeQuelenec

Hag stones - stones with naturally occuring holes - are plentiful on the local beaches. Traditional folklore states that they are protection from witchcraft, can protect against disease and by looking through the hole you can see the fairy folk. Dorset fishermen used to tie them onto their boats for luck. I'm not so sure about that but I do find the spaces fascinating and when drawing them I am not sure if I am drawing the stone or the spaces inbetween. This little nugget was a sketch from the summer probably made in a couple of minutes and then forgotten about just as quickly. Until now....


 I started by cutting shapes from pre-painted and printed papers looking from patterns, marks and textures similar to the stones that I have collected. Then I began to play with arranging them on a plain white backing. Four little stacks resulted that are giving me lots of ideas for further work.

Four Pebble collages   approx 20x5cm mixed media   ©2018LisaLeQuelenec

Pebbles - watercolour studies

Pebble studies in watercolour   21x15cm approx   ©LisaLeQuelenec2017

There is something very comforting about a pebble warmed by the sun and held in the hand. I seem to collect pockets full of pebbles from all the different places I visit; picked for their colour, texture, pattern or weight. Quite often holding particular pebbles can transport me back to the landscape from where it came. Some of them appear to depict complete little landscapes within their markings. I have a bowl of them on my drawing table along with all the other bits and bobs picked up on my walks. The above watercolour studies are a few favourites recently gathered locally. The one below reminded me of an early O'Keefe watercolour.

Pebble study in watercolour   21x15cm approx   ©LisaLeQuelenec2017

I think I feel a new project coming on.....